Malesa Owens-McGhee of St. Clair Shores was on the other side of I-94 when she noticed the cab of the semi was on fire. She said the driver appeared to be trying to put out the flames — when the fire suddenly blew out of control.

“It was a big, huge ball of fire,” said Owens-McGhee. “It was quite scary, and I was concerned about the people because it looked like it was just gonna blow — it was gonna explode.”

Owens-McGhee said the driver managed to run away and did not appear to be injured.

Hazmat crews were called out to the scene after fire was reported at around 10:15 a.m. A Michigan State Police dispatcher said the fire started in the truck’s engine.

By noon, traffic was getting by in one lane along I-94 eastbound at Mt. Elliot.

For the latest from the roads, keep it tuned to WWJ Newsradio 950 for traffic and weather, every 10 minutes on the 8s. For real-time traffic information anytime, click here.

After graduating from the University of Michigan, Sandra McNeill started her career as a newspaper reporter in a small town in England called Wokingham. Her daily walk to the police station to find out what was happening that day invariably came up...